Sharky's Machine (1981)

Tom Sharky is a narcotics cop in Atlanta who's demoted to vice after a botched bust. In the depths of this lowly division, while investigating a high-dollar prostitution ring, Sharky ... See full summary »

Director:

Burt Reynolds

Writers:

William Diehl (novel), Gerald Di Pego (screenplay)

Stars:

Burt Reynolds, Vittorio Gassman, Brian Keith

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Burt Reynolds	...	Sgt. Tom Sharky
Vittorio Gassman	...	Victor Scorelli
Brian Keith	...	Papa
Charles Durning	...	Lt. Friscoe
Earl Holliman	...	Donald Hotchkins
Bernie Casey	...	Arch
Henry Silva	...	Billy Score
Richard Libertini	...	Nosh
Darryl Hickman	...	Smiley
Rachel Ward	...	Dominoe
Joseph Mascolo	...	Joe Tipps
Carol Locatell	...	Mabel
Hari Rhodes	...	Highball Mary
John Fiedler	...	Barrett
James O'Connell	...	Twigs

Storyline

Tom Sharky is a narcotics cop in Atlanta who's demoted to vice after a botched bust. In the depths of this lowly division, while investigating a high-dollar prostitution ring, Sharky stumbles across a mob murder with government ties, and responds by assembling his downtrodden fellow investigators (Sharky's "machine") to find the leaders and bring them to justice before they kill off all his partners and witnesses, including Sharky himself.

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Plot Keywords:

prostitution | vice | murder | violence | law enforcement | 

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Taglines:

Nobody leans on Sharky's Machine. [Theatrical]

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French Italian

Release Date:

18 December 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Brigada Anti-Crime

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Deliverance Productions, Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The characters and actors who are the members of "Sharky's Machine" include Burt Reynolds as Tom Sharky, Brian Keith as Papa, Bernie Casey as Arch, and Richard Libertini as Nosh. Sharky's boss, Friscoe, played by Charles Durning, is the character who pen's the name "Sharky's Machine" and is arguably a member of the group as well.

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Goofs

When Billy Score shoots his first victims his gun has a silencer mounted on the barrel. We still hear "boom, boom" anyway. One shot is even heard from a POV outside the apartment where the killings are occurring.

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Quotes

Arch: Sharky, I hit his ass. He's got four bullets in him, and the fucker won't go down!
Sharky: Maybe he knows more about Zen than we do!

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Connections

Referenced in Everybody Hates Chris: Everybody Hates Malvo (2006)

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Soundtracks

"Dope Bust"
(Instrumental)
Performed by Flora Purim and Buddy De Franco
By Al Capps (as A. Capps), Bob Florence (as B. Florence), Dave Pell (as D. Pell) & Snuff Garrett (as S. Garrett)

User Reviews

Arguably Burt's best.

I haven't seen every single movie that Burt Reynolds has ever made, but this one (which I've just finished watching, for the third time) may very well be his best! It suffers only from some slow stretches; Burt perhaps tried to make it more "arty" than it should have been. On the other hand, he managed to avoid many of the usual cliches in the presentation of the "tough cop" role he plays (notice, for example, the scene in which he attempts to kiss Rachel Ward for the first time, or the fear he expresses just before the final showdown with the indestructible Henry Silva). In fact, Silva and those two ninja assassins are three of the most memorable villains of cop thrillers of the 80s. The film also has some offbeat touches, a surprising amount of humor, a brutal and gripping fistfight and many well-directed shots. (***)